If only there was something delicious here to stare longingly at...Make sure your Cook's Profile is loaded with gaze-worthy photos.Start uploading photos now!

About this Cook

I guess you can say that I've been cooking since about the age of 10. It wasn't until about 2002 that I decided that I wanted to become a chef and baker. I have since then taken cake decorating classes but have not had the time or cash for the culinary classes. I've collected tons of recipes and placed them in binders and the such. I love to read and I'm also a writer. I'm also into photography, drawing, painting, music and crafts.

My favorite things to cook

I love to bake cakes and muffins. I've given breads a try but ugh, I've not come close to mastering that yet. I'm also a fan of salads.

My favorite family cooking traditions

Home made pizza! Kids love making home made pizza's.

My cooking triumphs

I'm learning to use the slow cooker (crock pot) and I love it! I've only owned one for about 2 years now but I've worked tons with it since I went without a stove and oven for a while.

My cooking tragedies

I have a major issue with turning up the heat too high and burning things. Another issue is multi-tasking and not getting to food on time while the heat is up. Ack, I need to sloooooow down!

I made this pretty much like the recipe called except I used fresh okra and tomatoes. It was still really good and everyone ate it up. Some of us put it over rise and others put it over our chicken. Then there were all the seconds in which it was plain. I know that many are giving this a 5 star rating after completely changing the recipe, but I wanted to put it out there, even if you don't have cajun or Zatarain's seasoning to add to it (which completely changes the flavor, like going from Mexican flavor to Asian) it is still a good recipe. Give it a try!

I have to agree, a bit on the runny side. I had already pureed a bunch of cauliflower so instead of boiling chunks I just boiled what I had and then drained it. I then continued on from there. I used half and half to cut a little bit of the calories out and because I too knew how watery cauliflower could be, I only used a couple of table spoons. It was still a bit runny but not too bad. Next time, after cooking the cauliflower I think I'm going to wring it out by putting it into a towel/cheese cloth and wringing out the water and then letting it dry out a bit. Then I can add the other stuff to make it "creamy".